AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He glances at me and then down at the damage, and then back to me. "Run."
"Leave."
"Run, rabbit. Now."
Something in his tone tells me he's serious. Or maybe it's the fact that I actually just shot at him. I'm not sure. But suddenly, standing here pointing a gun at him doesn't seem like the wisest idea. In fact, it seems a little insane.
I turn on my heel, sprinting into the house.
Before I can even attempt to slam the door on him, he's coming through it, his face a thundercloud. He grabs me, yanking me up against him.
"Let me go!" I shout.
"Drop the fucking gun before you shoot yourself," he growls in my ear, trying to pry my fingers off the weapon. "If you hurt yourself, I'm going to be pissed."
"Aren't you already?"
"You haven't seen mad yet, bella." He wrestles the gun out of my hand, anchoring me to his body while he turns and places it on the credenza. As soon as it's out of his hands, his hands are on me again.
He picks me up, tossing me over his shoulder.
"Put me down," I shout, trying to kick him. I pound on his back, doing everything I can to make him drop me. The overgrown jerk doesn't even miss a beat as he stomps through my house, heading straight for my bedroom.
He drops me on the bed, wrestling me into a prone position as he crawls over me. Within seconds, I'm flat on my back and he's pinning me to the bed with his body, his face inches from mine.
"You shot at me." He enunciates each word, his eyes blazing with fury.
Tears well in my eyes, spilling over. I don't want to cry. I don't even mean to do it. But he's right. I just shot at him. "I'm sorry," I cry, cracking apart.
His expression softens. His hold on me gentles. "Bella," he breathes, pain flaring in his expression. "Ah, bella. You're breaking my fucking heart."
"You already broke mine, Diego." I sniffle, glaring up at him. "You should have just let Rafe kill me. At least then it would have been a quick death." This one promises to last a lifetime. One endless day of grief after another.
"Never," he vows. "I will never let anyone hurt you."
"You hurt me. You broke me."
"I know." He swallows hard. "I'm going to fix it, Athena."
"It can't be fixed."
"It can," he argues. "I know it can."
"It can't."
"You wouldn't be crying so hard right now if that were true." He cups my cheek, brushing tears away. "You wouldn't have tried to shoot me if that were true."
"I want to hate you."
"Do you?"
I sniffle instead of answering.
"I'm going to fix it."
"It can't be fixed, Diego."
"It can. I already talked to Rafe. First thing tomorrow, you're taking me in for Genovese's murder."
I blink at him. "What?"
"You think I didn't give you a choice because I didn't trust you," he murmurs. "That's not true, goddess. I didn't give you a choice because I know your choice shouldn't be me. I'll never deserve you. I'll never be good enough for you. But I'm a selfish motherfucker and I wanted you anyway I could have you. But that isn't fair to you. You're good at your job, Athena. A helluva lot better than those pricks want to give you credit for, so this is the third option."
"Diego, this is insane." I push against his chest, demanding he let me sit up. "You can't turn yourself in for murder. You'll go to prison."
"Maybe. Maybe not." He shrugs like it doesn't matter to him either way. "But Rafe won't. And you won't lose your job because of me. Everyone wins, bella."
"Everyone except you!" I cry.
"You asked me if I had any regrets. I told you I had a couple. Not being able to spare you was one of them, bella. You weren't supposed to find out the way you did, but I always intended to tell you what was happening and why. I just intended for you to be in love with me first." He gives me a rueful smile. "I guess I should have asked for more than twenty-four hours for that."
I stare at him, trying to formulate a response.
"If I have to lose to protect you, then I lose, Athena."
"Did you even kill Genovese?"
"It doesn't matter."
"It matters to me."
He refuses to answer, which is answer enough. He didn't do it. But he's willing to take the fall anyway. For me.
"No." I scramble into his lap, pushing him backward. "No."
"It's my choice, Athena."
"You made the choice for me. I'm making it for you. If keeping my job means you go to prison, I don't want it, Diego. I'd rather be the agent that failed than the woman who let you go to prison for a murder you didn't commit."
"I might not have pulled the trigger, but I was there when it happened. Technically, that makes me culpable under the law."
